Practicing Spiritual Friendship
What are the top ways I can serve my brothers and sisters in practicing real spiritual friendship?
God created us to be in relationships; first with Him and then with others. My experience is that everyone needs a friend, but not everyone is friendly. So why doesn’t everyone have a few close friends who they can share life together? The difficulty is that friendships can be messy, time consuming, and spiritually/emotionally draining. How then can we develop close spiritual friends?
Very few of us are born with an innate ability to be wonderful loving and loyal friends. Although we can’t control the emotions, attitudes, or actions of others; we can work on ourselves to develop spiritually healthy engaging relationships with others. The big question then is how do I develop into someone who others long to be with and greatly value?
Consider the Wisdom of Proverbs
Proverbs 17:17 – “A friend loves at all times.” Friendships require time and effort; it’s takes much more than a calendared appointment.
Proverbs 16:28 – “a whisperer separates close friends.” Keep gossip and those who do far from your friendships.
Proverbs 17:9 – “he who repeats a matter separates close friends.” Guard the confidence of your friends.
Proverbs 18:24 – “there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Close friends have an intimacy that protects each other … friendships require transparency.
Proverbs 27:6 – “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” Friends are honest with each other, even when it’s painful.
Proverbs 27:9 – “the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.” Open communication and counsel bonds friends together.
Proverbs 27:10 – “Do not forsake your friend” Friends are loyal … they never betray each other.
An Investment with Eternal Benefits
God has uniquely created us for spiritual relationships, but they require effort and sacrifice. As we seek soul mate friendships, like Jonathan and David (1 Sam. 20:17), let’s follow the wisdom of Proverbs to guide our search and develop our spiritual friendship character. I’m praying that each of us will follow God’s desire for spiritual friendships and He will bless those relationships!
Steve Howard, Small Group Coordinator